Here is my homemade dashboard. Not fancy but good for a high level howgozit. https://drive.google.com/uc?export=download&id=1nbtdZqkXHNHrwArwfIEEKwGmno1aZ0ot I use excel to keep track of each fund/ETF. The type of account (Roth, TIRA, 401k), asset type (Bond, stock, cash), style (intl, TSM, SMCap, e...

Once or twice a week, on cold winter nights, I like to indulge myself and have an Irish coffee. It helps keep me warm. The recipe I use has a simplicity that a Boglehead can appreciate -- 2 oz Irish cream, 1 oz Irish whiskey, 5-6 oz of coffee. Sometimes I add a little whipped cream on top. Yummy! I...

Although you are not making the most of the employer match, your wife is making an effort. I grew up in a family with zero savings so think I can understand her reluctance. I think that that paying for an advisor or third party to convince her may backfire. I know it would probably make ME more defe...

“I believe that it’s clearly possible to organize a first-rate group of analysts and portfolio managers into an investment firm that can significantly outperform the market averages.”
Pause.
“And ... I’m wrong!”

Since you are doing a large scale electrical system update (almost all smart lights need a neutral wire), I would recommend replacing your light switches with z-wave switches/dimmers in most areas - particularly where you do not need colored lights or individual light control on a multi-light circui...

Does option 1 allow you to be the stay-at-home parent? You would save on child care expenses, take on most of the home burdens, and reduce stress on your spouse. Could you consult on the side to add to savings? Most importantly - does your spouse fully support option 1? If not, it would be a non-sta...

I was able to donate stock shares from my Vanguard brokerage account by filling out the online form, scanning that & attaching it to a secure message. I contacted the charity ahead of time to get the info the from required. I phoned Vanguard the next day to confirm. I'm glad yours went well. Are yo...

Regretfully, my attempt to donate shares from my joint taxable "new brokerage" account was a comedy of errors, both on my part and misinformation and confusion on Vanguard's part. It worked fine for the last three years but this left me frustrated. First, I was told to use a different form. Next, th...

Amazon has the H&R Deluxe 2017 Fed with the 5% Amazon Bonus for $24.97 (as of 12/28). Break even is sending $300 of your refund to purchase an Amazon gift card to get a $15 bonus added to the card. Also, the software remains in your download library. H&R Block charges $4.99. Not sure I want to feed ...

From the information you provided it seems to me that you can afford to move and that you have your finances well in hand evidenced by being able to max retirement accounts and paying off the previous loan in only a few years. Other pragmatic considerations might be the cost of moving your household...

Alarm clock. Timer. Voice reminder. Link to your gmail calendar. Keep your shopping list (add to it via voice & use the app on your phone to see what you need while shopping). If you have Amazon Prime (or a Spotify or Pandora account) you can play music & tell Alex to "Stop playing in 14 minutes" if...

Couldn't sleep so I was up a 4:30 am and saw this thread (I'd looked at other ones before). Surfed over to Amazon and they had a Magicelec SV model as a lightning deal for $45 (was $63). Unless you add all the bells and whistles, I figured these are pretty much the same so why not try a non-brand na...

I'm glad we bought (lump sum) prepaid university plans in Dec 2006 for our two kids. Yes, I may have been able to recover post-2008 crash but who knows. In Jan 2009 my wife lost her job for 5-6 months so at least part of college was not going to be a problem. There is something to be said for peace ...

My main concern is the tax liability on the Joint-1 account when should I move and sell, Is there a better time to move? /SNIP/ I believe I should move everything in kind and sell at Vanguard, I have spoken with Vanguard and I believe they said everything could move in kind except for the 529 plans...

I just rejoined Costco after a 20 year break because of the free Navy Federal Visa promotion. Haven't tried the Kirkland onesyet but I remembered that in addition to the typical popular wineries, they would had bring in less-well know ones. Last week I found a number of Wine Spectator 92-94 rated Sp...

When I attended the Naval War College we worn slacks and coats instead of uniforms four days of the week. (The idea was to encourage more open discourse by minimizing service and rank influence.) About 80% of the males (including me) seemed to look a bit uncomfortable. Lot's of ill-fitting blue jack...

While nothing compares to the dregs of the pot coming onto the mid-watch, there is something to be said for a nicely roasted small batch of coffee from a local coffee shop. Our UF daughter brought home a bag of medium roast beans from Opus Coffee in Gainesville as a present. Even my not so sophistic...

One thing to consider & research is the track record of a company to provide OS & phone system updates. I have a 2015 Moto X Pure with an Android security patch dated Dec 1, 2016 which was provided in Feb 2017 (Verizon). Google provides the core update but the manufacturer has to build their specifi...

Not a lawyer but according to the same IRS Pub: "However, you can make unlimited transfers from one Coverdell ESA trustee directly to another Coverdell ESA trustee because such transfers aren't considered to be distributions or rollovers." The estate ought to be able to transfer to a new custodian/t...

It seems that you could simply change the beneficiary or transfer to an eligible family member as listed in the link below. From IRS Pub 970 (https://www.irs.gov/publications/p970#en_US_2016_publink1000178449): " Rollovers and Other Transfers Assets can be rolled over from one Coverdell ESA to anoth...

FL Blue small business HMO plan for 8 participants had a 14% increase (last year was 18%, year before about 20%) plus the total out-of -pocket increased $1000. Example of premium cost: Employee only - 9,988 per yr (of which company pays 50%) Premiums are higher since the average age of the covered p...

I've periodically browsed MMM. Apparently sprinkling F-bombs around is a mark of one's writing ability and commitment to the cause. I appreciate that Bogleheads (or at least the moderators & software) are able to find other words to more precisely communicate their thoughts. I will say that the MMM ...

The new Amazon Echo Plus, in addition to supposedly better speakers & voice recognition, incorporates a Zigbee radio so that some home automation devices (lights, outlets, motion sensors, etc) will not need a separate hub as long as they stick with "works with Alexa promoted products". The lack of a...

Need no, but there are lot of not necessary devices that make life a touch easier (and somewhat whimsical). I have 1 Echo, 2 Shows, and 2 dots. I initially bought it to interface with my home automation/smart home stuff to control lights, thermostat, etc. Here's a useful thing that someone else hasn...

JTBX - Yes you can change the beneficiary of the 529. Be aware of the rules on who would qualify beyond your children. You can also gift them the unused portion of the 529 later for grad school expenses. I did that for my son who got married last year. (Also, you can withdraw up to the amount of the...

States vary in how they aggregate data. In our state, the county is the district so you have to narrow your search down to individual schools within a district. Our county is the top ranked district in the state, yet the top schools are congregated in the northern part of the county. The nearby metr...

Jumping into the briar patch here: My wife became a SAHM with the birth of our son and several years later, our daughter. We felt strongly that one parent should stay at home. I took my turn after retiring from the navy and we "swapped." Of course she did all the hard work so I didn't ruin them. Eas...

Retired navy almost 11 years -- I think you'll be fine. Random thoughts: - Rather than speculate on your particular specialty, I'll just say that it might be nice to come back to CONUS for a short tour so you can figure out where to live long term and perhaps situate yourself for a job. You might no...

One data point: Toro Personal Pace with larger Briggs & Stratton engine. Three years zero problems & one day it decided not to run for more than 2-3 seconds. I replaced the carburetor & it works fine. Just remember to securely reattach the governor spring. If this happens again, you might just try ...

One data point: Toro Personal Pace with larger Briggs & Stratton engine. Three years zero problems & one day it decided not to run for more than 2-3 seconds. I replaced the carburetor & it works fine. Just remember to securely reattach the governor spring.

so it sounds like music integration and playback is the MOST significant and used feature of these devices? It's like any non-essential piece of technology - how much effort and expense do you want to put into it. I've always dreamed of having a house computer that I could talk to. I use it to play...

Why does an additional $20,000 distribution increase the total tax by so much ... ? Because the extra $20,000 income makes $17,000 more of your Social Security benefits taxable. This makes your tax go up $5,550 (37000 * 15%), 27.75% of the extra income. See the Wiki's Taxation of Social Security be...

2. When a lender reports to credit bureaus, there are very specific and strict rules about reporting any and everything accurately. Because of such rules, regulations, credit bureau contracts, etc. NFCU probably had no flexibility in this matter. The agent may have been accurately conveying the req...

They may or may not keep the loan in-house. We refinanced a 30 yr loan to 15 yrs with a much lower rate. Soon after the close they sold it but continued to service the loan. They do a good job with that. I did have one negative incident which soured me a little on NFCU. My wife was laid off during t...

Visit the site often during construction and look over everything that they are doing to make sure it is going well. Do not accept shoddy construction or any significant unwanted variation from the model plan that you purchased. They will of course promise to make it right in the end, but unless yo...

You may want to see if you are in the window for any retention or reenlistment bonuses that can be paid while you are in the qualifying AOR. We had some of our aircrewmen reenlist while across the magic line to get their bonus tax-free. Caveat: I've been out for 10+ years while so I'm not sure if so...

No idea what "Hedgable" is. It doesn't sound good. Maybe start with Vanguard or Fidelity and consider (once you do some reading/learning) consolidating to a single, low cost, DIY firm. http://www.hedgeable.com - a robo advisor Concur with bloom2708. Hedgeable will charge you 0.75% on an account les...

If you want to help with operating expenses, gradual might be best. Good advice. Some organizations such as churches publish the total amounts received for the week/month (although not the names) which may result in others reducing their giving if budget vs. income for that particularly year would ...